Response of nitrogen levels on the growth and yield of bottle gourd varieties

A field trial was carried out to assess the response of various nitrogen (N) levels on the growth and yield of bottle gourd varieties. Two varieties (Anmol and Long Green) were evaluated for their yield performance on six N levels (0, 50, 75, 100, 125 and 150 kg N ha-1). The experiment was conducted in a three replicated randomized complete block design with two factorial arrangements. The results revealed that all the characters examined in this study were significantly affected by different N levels (P<0.05. The highest N level of 150 kg ha-1 produced greatest values for all the evaluated traits as compared to control. The results further demonstrated that there was a simultaneous reduction in the values of all the parameters studied under nitrogen levels of 100, 75, 50 kg ha-1 and control remained the least. Across N application rates, Bottle gourd varieties significantly varied from each other for their various parameters. As compared to Anmol, long green produced largest values for all the traits investigated. Long green produced 240 cm vine length, 4.08 branches vine-1, 7.35 fruits vine-1, 484.39 g single fruit weight, 2360 g weight of fruits vine-1. In contrast, Anmol showed lowest values and produced 220.44 cm vine length, 3.76 branches vine-1, 5.91 fruits vine-1, 428.39 g single fruit weight, 2490 g weight of fruits vine-1. The current study concluded that the bottle gourd variety long green should be grown with N application at 150 kg ha-1.